Post-Budget reaction by Stayzilla
Post-Budget quote from CEO & Founder of Stayzilla.com Yogendra Vasupal:
As the leading player in the online budget & value Stays market, we are very pleased to see the bandwidth allotted to developing tourism in the Union Budget 2014. The focus on tier 2 & 3 towns, in the finance minister’s themed tourism circuits plan is something we are very happy about. We were also pleased to see the allocations made for developing archaeological sites and other tourist spots. In addition, we find the investment being made for the development of transport infrastructure – road, rail and air – to smaller towns very heartening.
Automation of visa process, will pave way for visa-on-arrival in the near future and will boost inbound tourism. The raise in income tax slabs, higher deduction on home loan interest, etc. will increase the disposable income with middle class thereby encouraging them to loosen up purse strings to spend on domestic travel. The other encouraging sign is the focus on developing North-East India as a hub of eco-tourism, we consider this a very positive development given that our own data shows increasing traction already for tourist spots in North East India over the last 12 months . In nutshell, this budget is laying all the foundations to boost tourism in our country – inbound or domestic.
As a growth stage start-up that hires a lot of young graduates, we are also very happy with the skilling initiatives being taken up to develop the employability of the youth. We would have ideally liked to see the FDI cap on ecommerce being removed, but we understand the concerns of the government and are more than happy to participate in a public debate to help arrive at a consensus. Overall, a thumbs for the Union Budget 2014.
